50% of Google First Page Results are HTTPS

Nine months ago this figure stood at only 30%, which shows continuing adoption of SSL protocols

In a recent article on the Moz blog, Dr. Pete Meyers discussed how more and more results on the first page of Google (based on a 10,000 strong keyword data set) are secure websites. The fact that this number is on a steady rise shows that this is a result of a greater number of sites implementing an SSL certificate on their domain, rather than any major algorithm update which increases the ranking value of HTTPS.

Current and predicted trajectory of HTTPS results on Google’s first page SERPs

Credit: Search Engine Land

As it stands, the MozCast data set shows that the current figure of first-page results with SSL encryption stands at around 50%, with it likely to increase to around 65% by the end of the year. Data from Rank Ranger, a different rank tracking system, shows similar correlating results.

It has been speculated that Google would increase the ranking boost that HTTPS domains would receive as more webmasters adopt the secure protocol. However, when asked directly about this, Gary Illyes, Webmaster Trends Analyst at Google Switzerland, stated: “No. We revisited the idea a few months back but we decided against it.”

Google seem to be content enough with the steady adoption rate of HTTPS to not incentivise it further, but implementing it on your site is still a ranking factor, and will also benefit your users. Contact your Account Manager today to find out how we can help to get you set up with an SSL certificate for your domain.

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